


As the world falls apart, all you need is a hug

by Yoyodiza



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/F, coronavirus fic, inspired by life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:41:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24796354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yoyodiza/pseuds/Yoyodiza
Summary: The Doctor escapes prison, and can't wait to be reunited with Yaz. What she doesn't realise, is that Earth is severely changed due to the coronavirus.Yaz dreams of The Doctor returning, but when she actually does, how will she explain the state of the world as they know it?Really, all they both want is a hug, in a world that no longer allows it.
Relationships: The Doctor & Yasmin Khan, The Doctor/Yasmin Khan, Thirteenth Doctor & Yasmin Khan, Thirteenth Doctor/Yasmin Khan
Comments: 1
Kudos: 29





	As the world falls apart, all you need is a hug

**Author's Note:**

> Yep, its a coronavirus fic. I couldn't help myself. I want a hug right now, so at least I can make The Doctor and Yaz have one.

The Doctor couldn’t believe it. She’d made it out alive. There was truly no jail that could hold her. For the first time since finding out her true past, she smiled. She was free. The first thing she was going to do with that freedom; go and find her friends. 

She knew they were safe. She had ensured it. Sending them away in another TARDIS had been heart-breaking, especially seeing the pleading way Yaz was looking at her. She hated that it was going to be the last time she would ever see her. 

Not anymore. 

The Doctor set the coordinates for Sheffield, Earth. She pulled levers excitedly, pushed buttons with abandon and spun round and round. Her excitement could not be contained. The TARDIS seemed to share in her happiness, as the old girl flickered around her in companionship. 

With a soft thud, the TARDIS landed. The Doctor grinned. 

Time for a long overdue reunion. Little did she know, she was returning to a very different Earth to the one she had left behind.  
…  
It was Yaz’s turn to go to the shop today. 

She didn’t really mind, in all honesty, but the anxiety still sat tight in her stomach. Going outside was a risk. Not just to her, but to her family. To anyone she encountered. 

Her job kept her sane during this troubled times. But with everything going on, she had to be more careful than ever. The constant anxiety of not having enough PPE to be able to do her job safely, or being spat on by a member of the public, or by going into an unsafe building, was beginning to grind her down.

Being cut off from her normal life, missing her friends, really didn’t help matters. She couldn’t see Ryan and Graham, especially with Graham’s history with cancer. She couldn’t risk it.  
More than ever, she was missing one friend in particular. 

Yaz thought about The Doctor all the time. In the three months since she’d been gone, the world had gone insane. The virus was taking its toll, and people had gone from baking banana bread and clapping for the NHS, to fighting racism and ripping down statues within 12 weeks. 

Where was The Doctor when you needed her? Yaz desperately needed her. 

Her heart skipped a beat whenever she saw a blonde head turn a corner. It seized when the wind blew the leaves on the trees. It fell when she realised she was wrong, yet again. 

She couldn’t bring herself to think the worst. The Doctor couldn’t be dead. She just couldn’t. Ryan and Graham didn’t share her optimism, but no longer shared their opinions with her on the matter. They were just being realistic, and were mourning her in their own way. But Yaz couldn’t let her go. 

It couldn’t end like this. It just couldn’t. 

Yaz made her way back to her flat, donned in her mask and armed with bags of shopping. She’d been lucky today; she’d finally got the icing sugar her sister had deemed absolutely essential. At least she could make her smile today. 

She hated the mask. Hated having to wear it. She hated the way it blocked off her airways, how claustrophobic she felt in it. She figured she should wear it more to get used to it. Now it was illegal to not wear one on any public transport, and more places required you wear one, she might as well practice. It was necessary. 

It also made it hard for her to see. It made it hard to see the ground ahead of you, so she had to constantly check for steps, to stop herself from tripping. 

She was almost back at her flat now, when she first heard it. That wheezing, groaning, that only one ship in the universe makes. She glanced up at the trees, and saw that yes, the wind had picked up. Please, no more disappointment, she thought to herself. 

She couldn’t have been more wrong.  
…

The Doctor flung the door of the TARDIS open, bouncing out of its doors. 

‘Ah, home sweet home,’ she announced to an empty street. She slammed the door shut behind her, and took a look around. The concrete jungle of the flats loomed over her, suddenly looking more menacing than they had before. That was weird, The Doctor thought to herself. She’d never thought of the flats as oppressive. Must have been the dark cloud looming over them, giving them a dark edge.

She glanced back down at the street, and started to realise something. It was completely deserted. 

No kids playing ball games when they shouldn’t. No students buzzing around. No residents milling about their homes. There was no one. 

Why was it so quiet?

The Doctor turned around again, examining the street, when her eyes fixed on a young woman. The girl stopped in her tracks. The Doctor squinted, trying to make out who she was.  
She was wearing a tracksuit, with a black mask covering the lower half of her face. Her long, dark hair was pulled into a lazy bun, and she was carrying shopping bags, presumably full of the weekly groceries. 

The girl dropped the bags, shock overcoming her. 

Yaz. 

The Doctor grinned. After 3 long months, here her favourite human was. Alive and well. 

‘Yaz!’ The Doctor called out to her, waving enthusiastically. 

‘Doctor?!’ Yaz called back, careful not to bring her hands up to her face. She choked on The Doctor’s name, her despair and joy coming out as one. 

The Doctor held nothing back. She dropped her arm and started sprinting towards Yaz. This was the moment she had dreamed of in her months of solitary confinement. Of running to Yaz, running into her arms. Of being held. Like she mattered to someone. 

Yaz witnessed this and froze. She had also dreamt of a joyful reunion with The Doctor. Of smiling, laughing, and hugging her long lost friend. But she couldn’t do that. Not anymore.  
The Doctor was nearly with her now, but Yaz had to hold a hand up to her. Stop. 

As The Doctor approached, her smile grew smaller, confusion and concern now settling on her face. Oh, how Yaz wanted the smile to come back. 

‘Yaz?’ She asked again, this time with less certainty. What was going on? Yaz kept her hand in place, just in case The Doctor decided to invade her personal space. 

‘Doctor, I can’t believe you’re here… how… I’m… I’m so glad to see you.’ 

‘I’m so glad to see you too, Yaz. I’ve missed you so much.’ 

Yaz felt her heart split in two.

‘I’ve missed you too. So much.’ The Doctor grinned at her. Now this was more what she had in mind for a reunion. ‘How are you even here?’ Yaz asked. 

‘Long story short, I got out of prison. Eventually. And here I am!’

Yaz couldn’t share in the enthusiasm. She was direct as ever. 

‘Last time I saw you, you were sacrificing yourself to save us.’ She took in a deep breath, feeling her chest tighten, her eyes getting moist. ‘We thought you were dead, Doctor.’ Yaz let out an unexpected sob, and only just realised that she’d started crying. She dropped her hand slightly, and The Doctor took a step forward, face falling at the pain her friend was in. At the sight of her friend reaching out to her, Yaz quickly snapped back to the moment and raised her hand. ‘No, no, you have to stay back.’ 

‘Why, what’s going on?’ The Doctor glanced at Yaz’s mask in confusion. ‘What’s with the mask?’ She gestured to her face. Yaz let out another sob, but tried to reign it in. 

‘Doctor, you need to get back in the TARDIS. It’s not safe for you here.’ 

‘Why not?’ She accidentally took a step forward, and Yaz automatically stepped backwards. The Doctor didn’t know the rules. 

‘There’s a virus. A deadly virus that’s spread across Earth.’

‘A virus? What virus?’

‘It’s called Covid-19. Or coronavirus.’ 

Yaz was expecting The Doctor to know what she was talking about. But there wasn’t even a flicker of recognition on her face. 

‘I’ve never heard of it. Why haven’t I heard of it?’

‘So you didn’t know this would happen?’ 

‘What’s happened exactly?’ 

‘Doctor, we’re in the middle of a pandemic.’ The Doctor’s eyes widened in horror. No, no, no. She couldn’t have just left her companions to this. 

‘Ryan and Graham, are they alright?’ She asked hurriedly. Yaz nodded in the affirmative, tears still streaming down her face. The Doctor just wanted to reach out to her. 

‘Yeah, yeah, they’re fine. They’re shielding, so I haven’t seen them in months.’ At least that eased some of The Doctor’s anxiety. 

‘Okay, good, that’s good.’ She paused. ‘Yaz, you need to tell me everything. How it started, where it’s spread, symptoms, everything. I need to understand.’ 

Yaz filled her in on the past few months. Starting with the market in Wuhan, to the lockdown measures, to the number of fatalities. Once Yaz had finished telling her tale, The Doctor looked off into the distance. Silence grew between the two women. The Doctor’s eyebrows knitted together, her mouth poised in a hard line. Yaz knew that face. That was a plotting face. 

‘Doctor?’ She asked nervously. She wiped away the last of her tears. She took The Doctor in properly for the first time. At first glance, her friend didn’t seem to have changed much. But then Yaz looked closer, and she could make out some healing wounds on her friend’s face. That shook her to the core. 

The Doctor’s attention snapped back to her, breaking out of her reverie. 

‘I should have known about this. I should have stopped it.’

‘Doctor, there’s nothing you could do. If you didn’t know it was coming…’ 

‘I should have been here with you.’ 

Yaz wished she had been. But she couldn’t change the past.

‘Well, you’re here now. And I’m so happy to see you.’ 

The Doctor felt a tug on her hearts. She gave her companion a small smile. 

‘Yaz, could you take off your mask? I haven’t seen you in months, and I just want to see your face.’ 

Yaz froze momentarily at the request. Would it put The Doctor at risk? Yaz felt well, but with the rise of asymptomatic carriers, she could never be sure if she was clear. But, The Doctor was standing a good two metres away. She couldn’t deny The Doctor this one request. 

Yaz gently removed her mask, suddenly feeling like she was lifting a veil. Feeling exposed, she blushed as she pulled it off, holding the mask in her hand. She glanced back at The Doctor, who was now drinking her in. She had forgotten how The Doctor’s scrutiny felt. The Doctor grinned at her. 

‘There’s my Yaz,’ she said warmly, affection clear in her voice. Yaz looked forlornly at her. 

‘All I want to do is hug you right now,’ she said honestly. She wanted to wrap her arms around her so tight. She wanted to be held. 

‘I want that, too. Very much.’ The Doctor admitted. This Doctor had never confessed to needing affection from her companions. Right now, it was all she wanted. 

‘I don’t know if I’m clear, Doctor. I can’t risk your life.’ Yaz was seriously fighting back the impulse to throw her arms around her friend. 

‘Well, I mean, I know I am. I’ve been in solitary confinement so I definitely don’t have anything.’ 

‘But what if I do?’ 

The Doctor paused to ponder, before a lightbulb seemed to go on in her mind. 

‘I have an idea.’  
…

After persuading Yaz into the TARDIS, The Doctor watched as Yaz sat in the med bay, awaiting the results of the scan. The beauty of having a state of the art spaceship was that The Doctor had many medical instruments at her disposal. All Yaz had to do was enter the scanner, The Doctor would input the details of the virus, and the TARDIS would analyse whether she was positive or negative. Yaz had to be confined until the TARDIS was done. Hopefully it wouldn’t take too long. 

Yaz felt anxiety hold her lungs to ransom. If she was clear, then that would ease a lot of the fear she had been feeling for months. But if she wasn’t, then she would have to self-isolate. She really didn’t want to do that. Especially not when she’d just got The Doctor back. 

She glanced up at her friend, who was watching her through the Perspex screen. The Doctor had explained to her that if she was clear, the doors would open and she would be free to go. If not, then she would be confined to the TARDIS for 14 days. Yaz had agreed willingly. 

The Doctor smiled at her, but Yaz could see she was anxious too. Anxious about what the results would mean for both of them. The Doctor pressed her hand against the glass, serving as a reminder that Yaz wasn’t alone. Yaz smiled back, warmth flowing through her body. She sure had missed that smile. 

Any second now, the doors would open. Or stay shut. The TARDIS had set a timer for when the results would be ready, and Yaz had been counting the seconds. 

10… 9…  
The Doctor glanced over at the timer, worry etched on her face.  
8… 7…  
Eyes still on the timer.  
6… 5…  
Eyes snapped back to Yaz.  
4… 3…  
Yaz closed her eyes. She couldn’t watch.  
2… 1…  
The doors slid open with pride. She was safe. 

Yaz heard the doors open, and began to open her eyes in realisation, when she was enveloped by The Doctor. Strong arms held in her place, snaking their way around her waist.  
‘Thank god, thank god,’ The Doctor whispered into her hair. A stunned Yaz finally snapped out of her stupor. She hadn’t been held in so long, she hadn’t realised how much she had missed it.  
Yaz wrapped her arms around The Doctor, and held her tightly to her chest. Her head rested in the crook of The Doctor’s neck. The Doctor clutched at her desperately, clearly needing this as much as she did. Yaz breathed The Doctor in, her lovely scent washing over her, calming her racing thoughts. 

‘Didn’t take you for a hugger,’ Yaz joked, trying to lighten the intensity. 

‘Oh Yaz, I’m not letting you go anytime soon. Just so you’re aware.’

‘Oh, I gathered.’ The Doctor held her even closer, and Yaz’s heart swelled with love. She couldn’t believe this amazing woman was back in her life. She was alive. She was healthy. ‘You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.’

‘No, Yaz, I’ve missed you more.’

‘Not possible, Doctor.’ 

‘Anything’s possible when you’re me.’ 

‘Good to see the old charm is still there.’ 

‘Of course, that’ll never leave.’ The Doctor paused, swallowing, as she tried to hold back her feelings. ‘I’ll never leave you behind again, Yaz.’ 

Yaz’s heart did another somersault. She tightened her hold on The Doctor, wrapping her arms around her more securely. 

‘Damn right. You have way more fun when I’m around.’ Yaz joked. She felt The Doctor smile against her cheek. 

‘Well, I certainly can’t argue with that.’ 

The two women held each other for a while longer, conveying everything unspoken between them that they weren’t ready to confess out loud. They had found each other again, despite the hardships they had faced alone. That was enough.

Right now, all they just needed was a hug.

**Author's Note:**

> Of course she was going to be fine!


End file.
